BY GABE CASTRO “We will now purge. We will torture you and violate your flesh. Remove your skin and share in your blood. This is the American way.” - Uncle Sam (Purge: Election Year) For nearly a decade, the fictional murderous release known as the Purge has...
BY MARIAM DEMBELE What does joy look like? After a night of tension and self-doubt, working up the courage to ask a lover to become a partner. A moment of forgiveness and acceptance after a hard break-up. Finding connection in a new city. Living in old...
BY JOHN MORRISON For as long as I can remember, the African/Black American cultural festival has been an institution in my life. Both of my parents are from North Philly--the Nicetown-Tioga section to be specific. Some of my earliest memories are of summertime block parties in...
BY KRISTAL SOTOMAYOR For many children of immigrants, there is an immense pressure to support their family and siblings. The eldest child typically holds the most responsibility by translating for their parents, caring for their siblings, and putting their dreams on hold to support the family....
CALL FOR ENTRIES - CHERRY ST PIER - NOVEMBER 2021 PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: TOWARDS THE OTHER SIDE. is a local filmmaker showcase that is seeking work that is experimental, speculative, horror and fantasy, weird and strange. We’re looking for works that spook, bump in the night, bloody and...
BY LEA ANDERSON You know it even if you think you don’t. Cher and Dionne in Clueless; Bianca and Chastity in 10 Things I Hate About You; Torrance and Isis in Bring It On. More recently, we can look to Paula and Olivia in The White...
SUBMIT YOUR SHORT FILMS: DESCRIPTION: We are looking for films that inspire copious amounts of joy, films that make us feel love, and want us to love—Think: summertime love, young love, messy love, in-your-20s love, grown and inviting love (but not too inviting), seasoned and wholesome love—We...
BY BEDATRI D. CHOUDHURY Who Will Start Another Fire is a collection of nine films by emerging filmmakers from underrepresented communities around the world, presented by the new distribution initiative Dedza Films. cinéSPEAK is honored to be a presenting partner of this incredible short film program. Your...
A Note From Our Editor-in-Chief BY MONIKA ESTRELLA NEGRA As I have come into my position as Editor-In-Chief of cinéSPEAK, I have asked myself what power is held within the stories we craft on our own. As a Black, queer filmmaker I have tried to maintain...
BY HANSEN BURSIC We are deep into Pride Month, and in Philly we have so much to celebrate. Philadelphia has a thriving and diverse LGBTQ community, and the city is a hotbed of queer and trans filmmaking. This list celebrates five incredible LGBTQ filmmakers who call...